Dons were right to take it slow says Robbo

Toby Lock

Karl Robinson felt his side were right to bide their time after going behind against Ipswich in the 1-0 defeat at stadium:mk on Saturday.

Brett Pitman’s header after 10 minutes turned out to be the only goal of the game, but Dons’ aloof approach to chasing the game in the first half left many questioning whether the home side were able to respond.

But a renewed Dons side appeared for the second half, banging on the Ipswich door to no avail.

A significant improvement from last Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Brentford, Dons ultimately came away with a similar return.

“That’s the Championship for you,” said Robinson. “That’s the harsh reality. It probably only happened a few times to us last season, but we want to be at this level, so we have to accept it and get on with it.

“The players were sensational today. Last week, we were bad with no work ethic. This week, we were very good with a work ethic and we deserved more than we got against a team that nearly got out of this league.

“We had a number of chances, and we hit the target. The keeper made some unbelievable saves. The players knew what they had to do to improve.

“You can’t expect us to be on the front foot after 10 minutes. We were the better team before they scored and they scored against the run of play. But we can’t afford to chase it straight away. If they’d scored again, it would have been over.

“You have to be defensively minded and a bit more savvy. Don’t always fight to get on level terms immediately - stay in the game.

“We passed the ball more than ever and quicker than ever. The difference in the final 10 minutes was we were chasing the game, and it’s obvious Ipswich were going to sit back.

“Territorially, we were better in the first half. We had so many attackers on the pitch in the second half.

“Today, their keeper pulled off three wonderful saves. The fans can’t be disappointed with anyone’s performance today.”

Pitman’s header after 10 minutes came after Kyle McFadzean broke over the halfway line and appeared to be fouled, before Darren Potter then gave away a free kick in a similar position, leading to the goal.

Robinson took issue with the decision from referee Darren Ward, saying he felt his side were harshly dealt with.

He said: “How isn’t it a free kick on Kyle McFadzean? And if that’s not, how is the one from Darren Potter a free kick for them? I don’t think the referee gave us anything today.”